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Ask: How can I accept that there is no ultimate responsibility for my actions?

“ACIM asserts that the physical universe and
all it contains…are total illusions…ACIM
tells us we are ‘sin’ free…and thus all acts we commit, regardless of their
impact on others, are consistent with the illusion. ACIM tells us we must only
‘Forgive’ our Brother in the Son of God, recognizing that our Brothers’ acts
against us are equally unreal. Every other spiritual path or religion I’m aware
of maintains that we are responsible
for our actions in our present lives (implicitly asserting they are REAL) and
will eventually be held accountable for them in some way, either in the
present, directly in the afterlife or during some form of reincarnated future
lives…This too, is disavowed by ACIM. The implication is that e.g., serial killer
Jeffrey Dahmer and Mother Teresa are not only loved equally by God but are
equally open to receiving all of God's Love without any consideration of past
acts. It is profoundly difficult to accept the rejection of any ultimate
responsibility/accountability for our actions...this connection is counter
intuitive and I cannot find credible evidence (or argument) in ACIM persuading
me to accept it…” - RM

You
never will find an acceptable argument to understand this. True forgiveness is
understood only through the experience of God (True Being) as Reality. This
does not come through the intellect. It comes through the experience of God
within you. And you experience God when you are willing to experience God.

Ultimate guilt is supposed to be
the “proof” that the ego is reality. Its story for you when you identify with
it is that you attacked a god and made a new reality (the universe of form,
including egos). This is the primary “sin” or guilt. Anything that then happens
in this new reality is therefore an extension of that original guilt. To undo
this you are supposed to live by certain (arbitrary, varying-by-culture) rules.
If you do not you are compounding your guilt. So if you say that this has not happened,
that Reality (God) is not touched by any of this, and there is no guilt you are
effectively saying that the ego does not really exist. It is a mistaken
experience. This is, of course, what A
Course in Miracles says. But you cannot expect the ego to accept this. You, however, can become aware of this fact
apart from the ego because your Reality in God is not changed by this mistaken
experience.

In the
world we need rules to live in harmony with each other. So there is a need for
legal definitions of “guilt” in the context of the world. And there is cause
and effect at the level of form so you do experience the effects of your
actions in form. But there is no ultimate morality decreed by a power outside
of you. “God”, as ACIM uses the term, refers to True Being, not to a
power-over. There is no power outside of you with power over you. There is only
True Being and when you seem to forget It you think that you are a separate
being among many other beings. This misperception is all that you need to correct
if you want to be at peace.

Certainly
all religions and most spiritual paths seek to spiritualize the ego. They are
not interested in transcending the ego but in validating it as reality. So they
teach that the egoic experience is real and has an effect on God. This is one
reason why A Course in Miracles is
different from most other paths. It leads you out of your misperception rather
than further into it.

ACIM
does not imply that Jeffery Dahmer and Mother Teresa are equally loved by God.
What ACIM says is that the entire limited experience of form, including selves
(bodies/personalities), is not real. What seems to happen in the universe of
form has no effect on God (Reality) whatsoever. So Dahmer and Mother Teresa are
not equally loved by God. Both are equally unreal. Neither exists for God.
Realizing this is true forgiveness.

The belief in ultimate guilt and
fear of punishment from a power that you have defied are the ego’s defenses
against God because they keep you from looking inward and seeing God. As long
as you want the ego to be your reality you will be resistant to releasing the
belief in an ultimate morality.

(My latest book, Releasing Guilt for Inner Peace, looks in-depth
at guilt, its source, its purpose, how it is maintained, and how it is released. It is full of every-day examples. It is available for only $5 in
digital formats. You can learn how to order it at www.acimmentor.com/booksbylizcronkhite.html).

>>>>>

Learn about the books The ACIM Mentor Articles, The Plain Language A Course in Miracles, 4 Habits for Inner Peace, and Releasing Guilt for Inner Peace at www.acimmentor.com.

If you have a question the answer to which you think will help others send it to Liz@acimmentor.com and indicate that you want it answered in the ACIM Mentor Newsletter/Blog.

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Comments

What you are talking about is an extremely difficult phase for the student. You will not find the answers through intellect, it will just drive you to distraction. The Course is something that is given to you as a gift, quietly and without your awareness it is happening. It is an 'experience' given as a gift. Remain calm. The questions you ask show you are committed to the process.

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I have been a student of A Course in Miracles since 1984, a life coach since 2000, and a mentor for students of A Course in Miracles and 4 Habits for Inner Peace since 2006. You can learn more about me and what I offer at my website, www.acimmentor.com.